Our Dozers of Love

mighty dozer of love ~d nelson

When you plant lettuce, if it does not grow well, you don’t blame the lettuce. You look for reasons it is not doing well. It may need fertilizer, or more water, or less sun. You never blame the lettuce. Yet if we have problems with our friends or family, we blame the other person. But if we know how to take care of them, they will grow well, like the lettuce. Blaming has no positive effect at all, nor does trying to persuade using reason and argument. That is my experience. No blame, no reasoning, no argument, just understanding. If you understand, and you show that you understand, you can love, and the situation will change” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

dozer vs mountain ~d nelson

If it was left up to me, and you,
everyone would have an equal opportunity
to live a simple, joyful life with equal access
to clean air to breathe, clean water to drink,
food, shelter, education, healthcare,
to go along with life, freedom & pursuing happiness.
If I had my way, nobody would die working,
e.g., reach the end of life while still
needing to work until the very end.

dozer moving earth from under our feet

The common good, which benefits all of us
including above mentioned opportunity, access & assistance
is being bulldozed by those with power, privilege & wrong views.
Funding for our common good will further be eroded by tax cuts
that will likely generate enormous deficits for our children, decimate the currenly impovershed,
leave crumbs for the middle class and gift a huge benefit for the already wealthy.

many new dozers just over the fence

Let us embrace compassionate in & out breaths
to fire up our own heart/mind’s dozer of love
that we better understand the true nature
of greed, hatred & delusion, within & without,
to better care for ourselves & those in need,
to help build a better society & preserve
& protect our precious planet.

dozer awaiting our heart’s desire

In the coming year, we’ll need to continue offering our caring presence,
together supporting needs & aspirations of love & understanding.
Not sitting idly by while decent society gets dismantled one law at time.
Those of us who are actually paying attention can see the direction this is headed.
The forces of ignorance, of greed, of anti-science, of anti-reason, seem to have won.
But, with patience, we have the eternal law of impermanence on our side.

really big wheels keep rolling

Yes, I experience conditions of happiness any time, still
what is rapidly happening outside of me makes me sad, also.
As depression is contagious, let us not be trapped in passing despair.
We can take baby steps of action. We can use our mindful bulldozers
to move mountains of love & hope. There are hopeful signs, such as…
Women & others with ethics are running for office at unprecedented rates. We must vote for them.
Donations to social causes are up. Voices long dormant are being raised.
Many are waking up to what is happening. There’s worldwide support for special prosecutor’s criminal investigation.

dozer clearing obstacles of love

When we begin to emerge from this national nightmare,
we should remember the complacency that brought us all here
and never again take for granted that from those
to whom much is given, much must be expected.
With the new year, may all beings be happy, safe & free.
With our love, may the rights of nature be protected from unwanted dozing.

“The death of democracy is not likely to be an assassination from ambush. It will be a slow extinction from apathy, indifference, and undernourishment.” ~Robert Hutchins

Reblogged this on Shielagh and commented:
This blog post from our own David Nelson speaks eloquently what my own heart has been saying. He reminds us that the “eternal law of impermanence” means that this too shall pass. And so shall we. If we don’t stand up for what is right and stand against what is wrong, who will? If not now, when? Many make resolutions at this time of year. Others simply vow to live their values more fully. Whatever we call it, let us make the most of this life, however much of it each of us may have left, because that we cannot know.

What important words you share and speak today, David. Thank you for expressing so eloquently what I have been feeling. By the way, I’ve always loved bulldozers! Somewhere there is a black and white photograph of me sitting on a bulldozer, hands on the levers, smiling at the camera, no more than 7 or 8 years old. They were preparing to build a new house across the street from our home in Castellamare, Pacific Palisades. The house was built, and nice people moved in. Then the mudslides of the 1960s began eroding the hill facing the sea, and that house slid away. Others along that street, on the ocean side, slide down and away as well. The law of impermanence was illustrated starkly for me, only understood now with my beginner’s mind. Happy New Year, my friend!

wonderful!
i, too, can’t help but be impressed with their mighty power to move & reshape earth.
a memory of a toy truck as a child gives way to the reality of how much they’ve
altered the geography of this sweet planet, for better or worse.
smiles & happy new year, david 🙂

Last night as folks were leaving our solstice gathering someone noticed our Tonka dump truck with loader sitting in the entry way to our home. Of course, everything stopped as each person had to play with it! Lovely, deep. personal post! Thank you!

An excellent post David, while it may seem that the world is crumbling beneath our feet, there are those diligently working away in love , light and truth, exposing the darkness that needs tilling.
Often in the midst of a construction site, there appears Chaos before order is seen. The foundations need digging, the earth needs to be moved. and we then need to lay the foundation stones.
The past stones which were laid, are laced with greed, and put profit before people.. The institutions that were set up to help and heal, like the big pharma for one, are one of the main ones which cause the most illness, and deaths. And those whom we put in power are used as puppets whose strings are all tied by the same bow.
But I live in Hope, I know people are waking up, and while at the moment we may think we can not make a difference, We are..
Each of us who shares Love, as we dig deeper into our own hearts, Each of us who shares kindness, as we share with one another be it just smile.
Each of us who Care. and show our empathy and compassion are shaping the world’s future.
We are the Dozers David..
The construction site of the world right now is looking pretty messy..
But our corner stones will be laid..
We may not live long enough to see how the re-build turns out.. But New Earth is emerging..
And we my friend came to shake, and wake up, those who are ready to stretch themselves awake..

Much Love, and wishing you a very Happy Christmas and Peaceful Healthy, Happy New Year..
Love Sue ❤

i’m grateful for your deep, inspired practice
which radiates conviction that it’s possible
for us to overcome the severity of these obstacles
with our individual and collective true love, Sue!
Thank you for using the power of your dozer
to care for all
with the lightness
of a feather!
happy, relaxed holiday to you,
smiles, david 🙂

I sure hope things get better! Robbing the poor to feed the filthy rich, and letting the environment go to pot, is not the kind of government anyone decent and human should cherish. We all need to act… not just mindlessly react!

Thank you, David for this sad, yet uplifting post. It’s hard not to get caught up in the sadness that the planet is being decimated one executive order and scam at a time, and our democracy sold to the highest bidder. As you said, our caring, love and understanding is needed, a belief in impermanence and a trust that the bigger picture is unfolding perfectly. Seeing the chaos, it is hard to see past the greed. With the damage being done on a daily basis, it seems irrevocable. Love is always the answer. Thank you for this loving, perfectly worded post. I wish you happy holidays and immense, deep peace for the coming year.
With love, respect and gratitude,
Mary

thank you for recognizing the sad tragedy which is unfolding to the earth & all of us upon it, Mary!
together we have enough love to carry us through.
wishing you a joyful, relaxed holiday
time with loved ones & nature, david 🙂

thank you kindly David for your wise words and kindness…i appreciate tellings and photography showing the ‘real’…i do know my grandson loves all these trucks and movers…i can see his little face and hope for a healing world…BIG smiles and all good things to you and your loved ones ~~~ smiles hedy 😀

Thank you for posting this, David. I too have been thinking the same things lately and wondering, where are the protest marches against this administration? Has everyone become too afraid or is it apathy. Why are we standing for this? Why aren’t our congressmen and women representing the majority of us. Something is very wrong here, more wrong than it’s been in my lifetime, at least.
Again, thank you for this!

thank you for your question & concern, like mine, dear Betty! where are the young ones who will inherit the mess? an orchestrated conspiracy of fear, ignorance, and apathy, perhaps. if i were young i might think most adults have been conformed, bought & sold. who are wholesome, compassionate role models helping the youth come together & take actions of resilience, helping them act as responsible citizens? from years past, i’m remembering chants during several marches, “the people united, will never be defeated…” may it be so, that people of all ages unite for a future to be possible. wishing you joyful, relaxed holiday time with loved ones 🙂

David, thank you for your thoughtful reply to my laments. I think you’re right about everything. Younger generations need someone like Kennedy, who inspired us baby boomers in so many ways. There was a lot of civil unrest but that actually brought change for the better. We “kids” got involved, even if it was just to flash peace signs at each other and wear flowers in our hair. (…sigh….waxing nostalgic… 😊 ) All that’s missing now. Hopefully a change for the better is coming again – a new, positive grassroots movement. Spiritual evolution. 🙂
Peace and best wishes to you and yours for the holidays, David. ☮️🕉️

Thanks for this post, David.
I have long thought that when we abdicate upward to our elected folks, we fail our democracy.
Each of us doing what we can, whenever we can, in the form that fits, and joining together… we become surprised at our power.

may your wish that we all participate in the process, acting as good, responsible citizens, come true, MK!
may the young be guided & inspired to make this world a better place with the power of their heart’s dozer 🙂

Thanks David for this wise, loving and caring post about us and our place on Earth.
Our responsibility and duty to take part in the preservation and life.
To believe we Who try to accentuate acrimony
In the name of cultural covers. and that we have an impact.
Our Xmas present to ou r beautiful planet.
Miriam

David, when I turn my eyes on this world, feelings of being overwhelmed assault me. Yet when I shift my gaze to that which is immediately around me I continue my Walk of Love and do everything I can in my own small corner of the world to weave Love and Peace. If the New World is to come what is built in greed and hatred and ignorance must be torn down in order for Love to sprout in the very ashes of once was. Peace to you, dear friend. Powerful powerful post, one in which I would think would have all who have read it, something to really ponder about. Bless you! 💝

hello smilecalm its dennis the vizsla dog hay their shoor ar a lot of bad and skarry things happening owt their theez days i no my mama and dada wurry abowt them i gess i am lukky to be a dog and all i hav to wurry abowt is gitting komfortabul for my nekst nap!!! the moment kan be an ok playse to liv in if it is a gud moment!!! happy holidays to yoo frum all of us!!! ok bye

Such an interesting metaphor for change, David. It does seem our present leaders are bulldozing past protections for those who are in need and for earth-care. I doubt that they realize they’re destroying the hands and lands that feed them as well. From the longer view, though, the dissolution of old piecemeal residual approaches to social and ecological care is not necessarily a bad thing if we, as members of communities, fill in the void with face-to-face neighbor-to-neighbor solutions without expecting rescue from those “above” us. The changes are already brutalizing people and the earth, and it will in all likelihood get worse before enough people wake up to the responsibility we each carry to rise to the challenges of rebuilding from the bulldozed ground up.

smiling to your mighty, insightful dozer of vision for people’s united towards community well-being & resilience, Carol!
perhaps if systems fall away, as you suggest, then the tried & true ways of harmony practice by aboriginal peoples
will again guide the way, compassionately. i appreciate your truth.
wishing you warmth, ease and joy for your holiday season 🙂

Dear David,
I can feel your energy and resolve through your words. And I am struck by how we can not just push past what’s happening in our country. These ills we see are signs of deeply held beliefs. We could use some excavators to dig down past the collective greed fueled by fear, past the ignorance of healthcare and plenty for some, and past the racism driven by hatred. And when we get to what’s beneath it all–it calls our for us to hold that unspeakable suffering with fierce tenderness. Only something so vulnerable and afraid would dress up in such fearsome clothes. Injustice is the collective sobbing of our wounded country and demands the radical compassion of loving even what is hurting.

your deep reflection on this post, Celia, really resonates with me! so well said.
as Thay has said so often, this is because that is. Living in separation leaves us separate.
i wonder, i really do; are WE really making efforts to come together, rather than stay apart? we are witness to attempts at covering up loneliness & the suffering history of humanity
with consumption is eternally a failing strategy. Fortunately, I often can experience peace and conditions of happiness, as can you, and many others. but many cannot.

seems these collective issues, including discrimination, climate change, require a shared awareness, coming together, embracing our fragility & impermanence. will we have the courage, or as you said in your post, fierceness, to bulldoze through the barriers which keep us apart? I hope so. thanks for being a kind, wise friend on the path 🙂

This is delightful David… we the people, as dozers of love, with faith to move mountains. This is wonderful to read and witness on Christmas day 2017, so filled with hope. You’re like Jesus when he arrived in the temple and overturned the tables of the plunderers and the pillagers. . . something like that…. Buddha nature…. It’s amazing how there can even be beauty in the dozers. Kind thanks for your many balanced gifts of contemplation and action.

thank you, Dear Bruce, for giving me this great Christmas image.
I’ve always thought of the carpenter’s son riding a donkey
but now with a mighty dozer of love, Jesus can
move misperceptions, helping people wake up (Buddha-nature),
reshaping the world’s compost thus grow abundant beauty
now & into the future 🙂

David,
In your first paragraph you refer to family and friends and I agree that understanding is the best approach – and that blame is certainly a waste of time. Reasoned discussion I believe should yield some results as long as we come from the right place without blaming, but I think that people are less inclined than before to want to listen to any reason in general.

In a more general sense – in politics and in social interactions – I believe that the reason why people are so blame-oriented is because there is no culture of introspection in the West (anymore). And when we don’t introspect, we don’t cultivate self-responsibility. When we don’t have a culture of being responsible and for taking responsibility we perpetually take the victim role while casting blame on everyone and everything outside of us – and we tend to consider ourselves as morally superior. I remember when I was young, this was not the general approach – we were encouraged to first look at ourselves and to first consider and correct our own conduct before blaming others. Such a practice of introspection tends to reduce hypocrisy and double standards and its also tends to reduce bad behaviour in the first place. I’m not sure such values are encouraged or instilled anymore and so nowadays we see so much posturing and moral high-ground grandstanding. It’s all about the ego…

I’m grateful, Jean-Jacques, for your deep contemplation of our individual & collective inability to look at ourselves and communicate compassionately in order to understand others. Does seem like much time has passed since personal responsibility & accountability were the expected norm. Getting physically, mentally & emotionally hurt is inevitable. It’s quite a misfortune for humanity having so many behaving as victims; my first-hand experience. That many, including schoolchildren, are developing contemplative practices, mindfulness & meditation is a little encouraging. Wishing you joy and ease during this holiday season. 🙂

PS, Great bulldozer shots – pity they are used to destroy the environment. My feeling is that people in cities are too removed from the environment to really care about it, Few people even believe in climate change. It is an intellectual crisis – people are too stupid to care… 😉

thanks! there’s much timber logging in the hills near me. for some time I thought pictures of those bulldozers would find a place. if only so-called first world countries had evolved to value nature, rather than value the profit made by destroying it. i believe individuals capable of learning to be empathetic and connected to nature, but that’s not the education given or received. thus, sadly, i concur with your assertion. 😦

The dozer images remind me of a cousin whose curiosity caused his death. Nick accidentally caused the dozer to tip and he was crushed. Republicans in Congress and the con man in the White House are running dozers non-stop over middle America. I expect the GOP will be crushed in the 2018 mid-term elections.

makes me sad hearing of your cousin, dear Susan.
i agree with the rest of your expression. may many get involved and not simply expect the politicians & government to do the right thing without hearing the voice of the citizens. wishing you a joyful holiday season 🙂

Yes indeed David.
I love that first line by Thich Nhat Hanh about not blaming the lettuce – I have never read that one before – so much to think about in that quote – thanks!!
Best wishes for the days to come, Sarah

There are many of us looking on from the outside and feel for your concerns and of course there is fear internationally too. There seems to be a terrific back lash for environmental concerns but these are times when we all need to be vigilant about the ‘news’ and seek out the best sources of information. I always like the planet before profit scales to look at intentions! Thanks for your dozers of love.

i’m grateful to hear your account from the “outside”, dear navasolanature!
hopefully, the backlash referred to, is adequate to help protect
and preserve our precious planet. makes me happy knowing
you and so many are doing good work to bring about good news
with your dozers of love 🙂

I hope so too and we can only keep working in our own ways to support and care for our precious planet. Good to share with you. Sandy Steinman’s blog keeps me up to date with the state of nature in the USA.

May that dozer be found
in our heart’s of love, JC,
bringing light to the darkness
and insight to the ignorant (& the supporters of ignorance)!
my holiday time has been pleasant!
wishing you warmth & relaxation 🙂

Excellent post! Very well written, we can all relate to it. Thank you for reminding us that everything in the world is impermanent and that truth and justice will prevail:) Happy and Healthy New Year to you and your family!

An inspiring post and much-needed reminder that while this nightmare will eventually surrender to “the eternal law of impermanence,” there is no room for complacency. We must bulldoze with heart and love loudly and fiercely.